Lights Over Yuletime
by cwesthawk
Summary: SOC Road Trip Story. In the wake of the Holiday season, not only do Kim and Shego find happiness, but Ron and Yori do as well. -KIGO-
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **Kim Possible and all IP as it is presented in the canon animated television series is Copyright and Trademark by the Disney Company, using characters originally created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle. This is a transformative fan fiction work.

**KIM POSSIBLE: LIGHTS OVER YULETIME, CHAPTER ONE**

Kim Possible strolled out to the edge of the beach and stood there, watching the waves crash against the shore. The sky was partly cloudy and the temperature was a comfortable 22 degrees Celsius. Kim was dressed in a red long-sleeved shirt with tight jeans and tennis shoes. Her long, red hair fluttered slightly in the breeze. Her olive green eyes gazed out across the azure waters as the sun set behind her.

Kim smiled at the sight. Her grandmother's beach house in southern Florida was always so beautiful and welcoming. While the family usually celebrated Christmas in Middleton, where there was at least a chance for a white Christmas, Nana Possible had insisted that the family come out to Florida this year. Part of it was Kim's fault, actually. She and Shego had been on their road trip and had been on the East Coast since Thanksgiving. They had traveled south on US 95 from Plymouth, Massachusetts, and visited various cities like New York (where they promised themselves they would return on New Year's Eve), Philadelphia, Washington, Richmond, Fayetteville, Savannah, Jacksonville, and Daytona Beach. Nana Possible's retirement home was a privately owned community sitting directly on a beachfront south of Daytona Beach. And it was beautiful.

Kim took a deep breath and turned to look back at Nana's house. Inside were most of her extended family. Her grandmother, Nana Possible, sat in the living room with her two sons, Dr. James Timothy Possible and Cody "Slim" Possible, along with James' wife and Kim's mother, Anne. Kim's younger twin brothers, Jim and Tim Possible, were busy making a fool of themselves around their cousin, Jocelyn "Joss" Possible. Kim's traveling companion, Shego, was busy setting up their bedroom and had insisted that Kim go and spend time enjoying her family instead of helping.

Kim took a deep breath on that thought. _Their _bedroom. That almost stopped Kim's heart. It was funny... not even a year and a half ago, both Kim and Shego would not have even thought about sharing the same building together, let alone the same bedroom. They had been bitter enemies, after all, Kim the hero and Shego the villain. The Lowardian Invasion, and the subsequent pardon that Shego was given for her role in thwarting the Lowardians, had changed all of that. Shego was making an honest go at being... well, honest. So much so that when Drakken had tried to get back into world conquering, Shego protested, which nearly cost Shego her life. Shego trapped Drakken, turned him over to Global Justice, and fled to Kim for sanctuary. It was then that they decided to go on that road trip that they had discussed a month prior. During the trip, Kim and Shego had grown accustomed to sharing a room at nights, if even in separate beds.

Sharing a bedroom at Nana Possible's house was an entirely different thing from sharing a motel room. Kim closed her eyes and took a deep breath at the thought. She knew she was just overthinking it. But she had been crushing on Shego for some time now... for reasons even she didn't fully understand, seeing as they both preferred guys. And the thought of sharing a bedroom in her grandmother's house was... delightfully scandalous.

It wouldn't be the first time the two of them had done something that bordered on the scandalous. On their first night in Santa Fe, they shared a bed; however, in both women's defense, that had more to do with the temperature outside and Kim's mood after Shego had been visited by police officers than anything else. The two of them had also gotten a little bit too goofy in Washington, D.C.; they had literally been kicked out of Lincoln Memorial for having posed on Lincoln's shoulders. Or the time they were driving through Savannah, stopping local residents and asking where they might find some tasty Georgia peaches. And Las Vegas, right after leaving Middleton in October... suffice it to say that what happens in Vegas truly does stay in Vegas.

Kim chuckled at the warm memories. Shego had been right. They had both needed this road trip. Not only had they needed to just get away and unwind from the constant hustle of being hero and villain, they needed to get away and just make some memories of their own. Now Kim could write her ex-boyfriend and still best friend, Ron Stoppable, with news of her latest adventure on the road trip and feel like she wasn't trying to bore him.

Speaking of Ron, Kim pulled her smart phone, the one that Shego had bought for her in Vegas, and brought up her email. It had been a few days since she last checked her email and Ron usually wrote her at least once every couple of days. Sure enough, there was a letter in her inbox from Ron. Smiling softly, Kim tapped the email and read it aloud to herself.

_Hey, KP!_

_I hope your Christmas is going well for you. I heard you're going down to Nana's this year. Yikes! I hope you don't roast to death in that scorching Florida sun! Haha! Anyway, Happy Ho-Ho-Ho and all that! Give everyone my love. Yeah, even Miss Fiery Hands Of Death. I'm still weirded out by you carpooling with her. But she hasn't done you wrong yet, so I won't say anything._

_Except that I just did. Gyah! I hate my big mouth sometimes!_

_Anyway, I got a double-whammy this year. It was all good for the Ron-man. You wouldn't believe..._

* * *

"So, this is the Yamanouchi Ninja School?" asked Donald Stoppable as he and his wife, Lonnie, walked along the pebblestone path through a carefully cultivated cherry tree orchard on their way to the main dojo/temple of the compound. In Lonnie's arms was the three year old Japanese girl they had adopted nearly three years ago, Hana. Hana glanced around happily, cooing and gawing at the sites around her.

"In all of its glory and hype," Donald's son, Ron Stoppable, agreed, presenting it all with a flourish as they walked along. "In a moment, we'll be passing the training barracks. This is where most of the students sleep if they're still in basic training. These guys aren't really ninjas yet, but then again, most of them aren't much older than Hana, either."

"Oh, my," Lonnie breathed, looking at the large barracks buildings on either side of the path as they walked by. "There must be hundreds of kids here."

"There are 144 trainees at any given time," Ron agreed as they continued to walk. "Most of them either give up or graduate by about age 11 or 12."

The Stoppable family continued to walk. They passed through a beautiful Japanese garden, complete with a carefully manicured stream and a flora-adorned bridge from which to observe the garden in all of its splendor. After the Stoppables took in the sight, they continued along the path until they reached other pair of buildings.

"This is the Genin dorms," Ron explained. "They're like the training barracks, except that you have dorm rooms shared four to a room rather than a large common room. Genin are technically ninjas now, but they've still got a lot to learn. So they take on simple missions and train the rest of the time."

Donald nodded thoughtfully as he and his family continued to walk along the path. The path opened up onto a series of mysterious looking statues with colorful streamers and various other decorations adorning them.

"What are these?" Lonnie asked, admiring the statues warily as Hana tried to reach out to grab at one of the streamers.

"The Yamanouchi clan venerates Shinto spirits," Ron explain, pausing to turn and bow reverently to one of the statues. "Each of these shrines is dedicated to a particular spirit of luck, fortune, skill, or whatever. The students pay their respects to these spirits each day as they pass from the barracks and dorms to the training grounds."

"And you venerate them, too?" Lonnie asked, a slight bit of concern in her voice.

"Well, doy!" Ron laughed as he guided his parents past the rest of the statues. "I mean, when in Rome and all that. It's called being respectful to my fellow students. And it's part of the discipline in the training."

"I see," Lonnie replied, clearly not entirely mollified.

"I haven't abandoned my Jewish faith," Ron explained, smiling softly at his mother as they walked along. "I mean, Master Sensei is very respectful of everyone's faiths, including mine. And Yori's been asking a lot about it lately."

"Oh, really?" Lonnie asked, suddenly a lot less apprehensive. If her son was not only _not_ abandoning Judaism but was also working towards converting his girlfriend to Judaism...

Ron nodded. "I don't know why, since she's always been so faithful to her Shinto faith, but she's been asking me a lot of questions about it."

"Well, there is always hope," Lonnie said, which earned her a glare from her husband that she found confusing.

"Past the shrines are the training grounds themselves," Ron continued. As he spoke, the quartet stepped into view of two large training grounds surrounded by various building. Dozens of student ninjas were practicing, training, and sparring. "This is where the trainees and Genin train and spar. The buildings you see over there are the Chuunin apartments."

"The... what?" Donald asked, looking around at the expertly crafted Japanese architecture.

"The Chuunin are who you think of when you think of ninjas," Ron explained, pausing to admire all of the students hard at work. "They're the ones who go out and do the actual stuff that ninjas are known for... although ninjas are supposed to not be known for anything. Thanks for ruining _that _one for us, Hollywood!"

Donald chuckled softly at that, which prompted his wife to give him a queer look. Hana, meanwhile, continued to make noises and giggle and laugh at the sights.

"Anyway, each of the Chuunin share a bunk room with a single partner," Ron said as he turned to walk further down. "Their dorm is right on the training grounds because they're also expected to train the trainees and Genin."

"Makes sense," Donald agreed, nodding his head as he followed his son. "Keep the teachers close to the classrooms."

"Exactly," Ron agreed.

Soon, the path opened up into a large courtyard, where three buildings indicated the end of the path. These buildings were exquisitely built. Many of the students were in this area, apparently cleaning, gardening, or performing maintenance on the buildings.

"And this is the Grand Courtyard," Ron declared as they walked along. "Here is where Master Sensei greets all of our guests. The Jonin ninja also enjoy full apartments in these two buildings. Our Kage, Master Sensei, lives in the Grand Temple and Dojo straight in front of us."

"Wow...," Lonnie breathed, looking the grand building at the end of the path appreciatively.

"So, what rank are you, son?" Donald asked, his pride obvious in his voice.

"Um...," Ron mumbled, glancing away and scratching the back of his head. "Trainee..."

"Wait," Donald responded, cocking a brow in confusion. "You're this master of monkey magic... you and Monkey Fist are the only two people who possess it..."

"And Rufus!" Ron corrected with a rather academic air.

"Yu-huh! Me!" came the squeaky voice of Rufus, Ron's pet naked mole rat, as he poked his head out of the pocket of Ron's white _gi _uniform.

"And Rufus," Donald conceded. "Listen, my point is, you're this powerhouse of a martial artist. You have all of this incredible power, power that you're getting better and better at using. You're the pride and joy of this dojo. You're this hero of prophecy. And you're only a trainee?"

Ron hung his head in shame. "Well, getting the ranks means passing the classes and the tests."

Lonnie narrowed her eyes at her son. "You've been telling us you've been excelling in your classes."

"Doy! At the Cordon Bleu! At culinary school!" Ron admitted. "My instructors say I have the makings of a world-class chef. I just happen to make a much better cook than I do a ninja."

"That still doesn't make me happy about how they're treating you here," Donald said.

"Good news is that Rufus is a Jonin," Ron added proudly.

Rufus leapt out from inside Ron's pocket and began expertly displaying martial kata like a true master.

"So, the naked mole rat has a greater rank in the ninja arts than you do," Donald said in disbelief.

"Are you kidding?" Ron laughed. "You should see what Rufus' size does for him in the stealth department. And his Monkey Grip Roundhouse Kick is a beauty to behold..."

"Ronald, we're losing focus on the issue here," Lonnie scolded. "We're concerned about the psychological abuse you're enduring here, being treated like you are. Is it because you're not Japanese? Is it because you're Jewish?"

Ron looked at his mother like she had just fallen off of the short bus.

"Ronald, we understand you enjoy your time here," Donald explained, trying for a more diplomatic approach. "We also understand you have feelings for this Yori girl. But you have to understand. As your parents, we're very concerned. It has been four years since you started here. And they haven't elevated you in rank even once."

"That is because Ron Stoppable-san's destiny as the Ultimate Mystical Monkey Master was never tied to such secular concerns as rankings within a ninja school," came a wizened old voice from over to the side.

All three individuals turned to see an short old man, his face nearly completely obscured by his eyebrows, mustache, and beard. He wore the robes of a traditional Japanese noble, but carried himself like a cinematic martial arts warrior. He floated... yes, floated... down to the Stoppable family.

"Master Sensei," Ron said, bowing respectfully to the old man.

"Hey, you're the guy that ran the Yamanouchi Adaption Age...," Donald started to say, before things clicked in his brain and he made the connections. "Oooooh!"

"Sensei!" Hana giggled, trying to peel herself out of Lonnie's arms so she could move towards the old man.

"Excuse me?" Lonnie said, considering the old man carefully. "With all due respect, your honor, or... or whatever I'm supposed to call you. But what purpose does it serve you to hold my son back like you are when he's done so much for you and your school... for the world."

"Stoppable-san has indeed made great strides as a Master of Mystical Monkey Power," Master Sensei agreed. "His status as a Mystical Monkey Master is completely independent of his status as a Yamanouchi ninja."

"So, he _is_ treated with respect, just not as a ninja?" Donald asked for clarification.

"_All_ of my students are treated with respect," Master Sensei replied, with no hint of malice whatsoever to his voice. "However, it is indeed true that Stoppable-san has proven his worth as a Mystical Monkey Master multiple times over whereas he is still attempting to grasp the basics of the arts of the ninja."

"So, how do you get by, sleeping in the trainee barracks with so many other people?" Donald asked his son.

Master Sensei rose a brow to Ron, who simply looked down to the ground in an attempt to hide the deep red blush on his face.

"Ronald?" Donald asked, now concerned.

"Um...," Ronald mumbled, fidgeting slightly.

"Remember, Stoppable-san," Master Sensei gently said, looking supportively to his prized pupil. "The naked truth is always more liberating than the burdening cloths of a lie."

"Yori is a Jonin," Ron finally admitted. "And... and she shares her apartment with me."

"Oh, is that all?" Donald said, sighing in relief. "Here, I thought you were going to say something like... OW!"

Lonnie, who had just cuffed her husband on the back of the head, growled at Donald. "Think about what he just said, Donald. He's shacking up with a girl."

Just as Lonnie had finished speaking, all three Stoppables noticed that all of the trainees and Genin in the courtyard had ceased all of their work and had assumed battle stances in a circle around the small group.

"Be calmed, my students," Master Sensei announced. "Stoppable-san's mother was simply exercising an American custom for expressing disagreement with her husband."

Nearly in unison, all of the students rose into relaxed stances, then bowed respectfully to Master Sensei before returning to their duties.

"You know, for a bunch of ninjas, you sure do take someone being violent very seriously," Lonnie breathed, her face nearly white as a ghost.

"I make is expressedly clear that non-consensual violence on the dojo grounds is quite forbidden," Master Sensei agreed. "Now, concerning the topic of Stoppable-san's residence..." Master Sensei turned to Ron. "Stoppable-san, why not escort your parents to your apartment. Yori expressed a desire to show it off to them when they arrived. I believe she is there now."

"You got it, Master Sensei," Ron replied, bowing respectfully to the old man.

"Good," Lonnie said under her breath. "Cause I'd like to give that little hussy a piece of my mind..."

Donald gave Lonnie a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder as Lonnie adjusted herself to hold Hana better. The two elder Stoppables then followed their son across the courtyard and into one of the apartment buildings. After climbing some stairs, Ron turned right and approached a doorway. Both Donald and Lonnie took pause when they noticed a _mezuzah_—a small scroll of Hebrew Torah verses within a decorative case—placed on the doorjam at about shoulder height, slanted inward towards the door.

"I will admit, you'll definitely see which side of the apartment is mine," Ron said with an apologetic smile.

Lonnie merely shook her head as Donald chuckled softly.

With that, Ron took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Yori!" Ron called as he stepped into the apartment. "I'm home!"

Ron then stopped and gawked at the sight in front of him. As Donald and Lonnie entered the room, they gawked at the sight, too.

Across the room, sitting on a table next to a window overlooking the courtyard, was a golden _chanukkiah _with eight unlit candles placed upon it. A smaller, simpler candleholder with a candle sat beside the _chanukkiah_.

"Ronald," Donald nodded appreciatively. "I like this. Where did you get the _menorah _and _mezuzah _here in Japan?"

"I...," Ron stammered, still gobsmacked by the candelabrum himself. "I didn't."

"What?" Lonnie asked, confused. "Then how...?"

"I ordered them off of Ebay," came a soft, feminine voice from inside the adjoining bedroom. "The shipping costs were extravagant, but the purchase was well worth the money."

All three Stoppables turned to see Yori standing in the doorway leading to the bedroom. She was dressed in her white _gi _uniform and sported a soft smile that immediately put Ron at ease.

"Yori?" Ron asked, motioning to the _chanukkiah_. "You did this... for me?"

"It was my honor to do it for _both of us_," Yori corrected, stepping up to the young, blonde man. "You have shown such tolerance and respect for my Shinto faith. Why should I not afford you the same honor and respect? I even have some of those spinning tops of which you spoke..."

"_Dreidels_?" Donald offered helpfully.

"Yes, _dreidels_," Yori agreed, smiling brightly at Ron's father. She then turned to Ron and placed her hands lovingly on his chest. "Ron-kun, perhaps you could teach me how to play?"

"Of course I will, Yori," Ron smiled impishly as he brushed one of her raven bangs out of her eyes. "It would be my honor."

Yori giggled softly then turned to Ron's parents. "Stoppable-basan, Stoppable-jisan, I do hope you will find your accommodations here acceptable for your stay. I have requisitioned beddings for you and for Hana-chan. I have also purchased additional supplies for Hana-chan, like foodstuff and diapers."

Donald rose a brow to Lonnie. "So, what do you think of this 'hussy' now, dear?"

Lonnie blushed deep red at her husband's blatant attempt to out her for her attitude. "Um, I... I approve. Wholeheartedly."

"What is a 'hussy'?" Yori asked with innocent curiosity.

"Don't worry about it, Yori," Ron replied, growling at his mother. "I'll explain after my parents leave after the holidays."

Lonnie gulped audibly.

"In the meantime," Donald said, clapping his hands together to dispel the tention in the room, "since it pretty much dark outside now, why don't we go ahead and light the first candle of the _menorah_. Ronald, would you do the honors?"

Ron smiled and nodded to his father. Walking up to the table with the _chanukkiah_, Ron picked up the smaller candle and lit it with a nearby match.

"Since the light of the _menorah _can only be used to meditate on the Hanukkah story," Ron explained to the curious Yori standing next to him, "and not for doing things like reading or seeing by or whatever, we use this separate candle, called the _shamash_, to see by. I'm also going to use it to light the first candle of the _menorah_."

With that, Ron carefully tilted the _shamash _candle forward and lit the first _menorah _candle.

"Now, we'll let this candle burn for about half an hour," Ron continued to explain, "while we pray and meditate. Then, tomorrow, we'll put a fresh candle in and light two candles for the second day. And so forth."

"What do you pray?" Yori asked respectfully.

"Do you remember the prayer, son?" Donald asked. It was at that point that he noticed that Donald was to his right while Lonnie was to Yori's left.

"I sure do, Dad," Ron smiled. "So not the drama."

With that, Donald and Ronald took each other's hands while Ronald and Yori did the same. Lonnie then took Yori's free hand and all three Stoppables bowed their heads. Yori, realizing that she should do so, did the same.

With that, Ron began reciting the first of the three _Brachot _blessings traditionally recited after the lighting of the _menorah_.

For the first time since his parents arrived in Japan, Ron felt at peace. He squeezed Yori's hand lovingly to signify his contentedness, a gesture that was quickly and enthusiastically returned.

* * *

Kim giggled as she read Ron's email. Ron had always had a fear that his parents would not accept his love for Yori. Both Donald and Lonnie had looked forward to Ron marrying Kim someday, even when the two had been kids. Ron's decision to move to Japan to be with Yori had shocked his parents nearly as much as it had shocked Kim. In hindsight, it seemed everything had worked out in the end. Ron was with a woman who would love him for who he was, not for who she wanted him to be. Kim, despite her heartache, had learned a valuable lesson about herself and her expectations of others; she vowed to never treat another lover as callously as she had treated Ron. Kim felt blessed that she and Ron had later discussed their differences and returned to being best friends.

All of a sudden, Jim and Tim's voices rang through the fog of Kim's reverie.

"Kim! Come back in! We're about to open gifts!"

Kim shut down the email app on her smart phone and tucked the device back in her pocket. Wiping a tear from her eye, Kim smiled and turned back towards her grandmother's house.

**[END CHAPTER ONE]**

**Note (Honulicious): **I've already privately messaged you my response. But I forgot to answer your concern about the girls' presents. I've rewritten the scene to account for that. Also, thank you for the idea of the mistletoe kiss.

**Note (Anttolas): **I agree there should have been something for Monique. In fact, I originally planned on having a Kwanzaa scene with Monique and her family, but time got away from me. I've written it in.

**Note (TanteiJe): **The notes are no longer empty! LOL! On a more serious note, yes, I got the ranks from Naruto, but not by choice. Technically, I got the ranks from _Ninja HERO_, a roleplaying game supplement for martial arts story roleplaying. But when I did a Google search for ninja ranks, 59 out of the top 60 hits were about m***f***ing Naruto, not about real-world ninja ranking. The ranks were the same as from _Ninja HERO_, so I just gave up and ran with that. (On a similar note, when I want to do a Google search on the character Sakura, I want the Street Fighter character, not the m***f***ing Naruto character. The Naruto character can kiss my ass.)

**Note (Robert Teague): **Thank you, sir. That you would take the time to comment on my story, given that I'm not even five months into this community yet, is something I hope I will never take for granted.

**Note (bat fan1987, The Last Poison Apple, Jimmy1201): **Thank you, guys! Positive reinforcement is always welcome here.

**Note (Victoria Bitter): **Please get an account. Your review is actually the type I look forward to the most, since it's expressed concerns like yours that drives me to look back on my work, see what I did wrong, correct it, and improve myself for my future work. But it does me little good if I can't open a dialogue with you and get a deeper understanding of your concerns. I've now turned on guest review moderation so I can encourage bold reviewers like you to have an account through which I can communicate. Thank you.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **Kim Possible and all IP as it is presented in the canon animated television series is Copyright and Trademark by the Disney Company, using characters originally created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle. This is a transformative fan fiction work.

**Note: **I've pulled another _Truth of Gratitude _here. I ended the original _Lights Over Yuletime _too abruptly and with an inappropriate scene. So I've rewritten the mistletoe scene and trashed the original ending scene. The new ending scene reveals a new plot twist that I think will make the SOC Road Trip series even more interesting.

**KIM POSSIBLE: LIGHTS OVER YULETIME, CHAPTER TWO**

Dr. James Possible stood up from the large Christmas tree in the living room of his mother, Nana Possible. He had a large, gift-wrapped package in his hands. "And this one is to Dr. Anne Possible from Shego."

James handed the package to Anne, who accepted it graciously. "Shego, you shouldn't have."

Shego, who was sitting on the other side of the room next to Anne's daughter, Kim Possible, on a love seat, smirked playfully. "I know I should not have. But I wanted to see your face when you saw it."

Anne smirked knowingly at Shego as she unwrapped the package. Anne's eyes went wide as she realized what she was holding.

"A Star Trek style medical tricorder?" Anne gasped, looking at Shego incredulously.

"I fronted the money for its development," Shego said, meeting Anne's gaze with a soft smile. "According to Kimmie's Nerdlinger, that can do a lot of the sort of scans that he can do through Kimmie's wristwatch. It's not as powerful, since it's doing everything itself rather than piggybacking onto the Nerdlinger's computers, but it should still be useful."

"This is incredible!" Anne breathed, examining the device in the box carefully. "Thank you!"

"You're very welcome," Shego purred, easing back into the love seat with a satisfied smile.

Kim smiled gently as she considered her family and especially Shego. Something about Shego just seemed... right. Kim felt good sitting next to her. She didn't want this evening to ever end.

"And this one is to Jim and Tim from Nana," James announced. He held up a fairly large gift-wrapped package.

"Hicka-bicka-boo?" Jim asked, turning to his twin brother.

"Hoosha!" Tim replied, smiling impishly at his twin brother.

"Thank you, Nana!" both boys said in unison as they walked over to accept the package from their father.

As Kim watched her little brothers, her smart phone chimed softly. Kim pulled it out and checked the email app.

Shego glanced at Kim and rose a brow. "Who is it?"

"Monique," Kim smiled, tapping a couple of keys on her touchscreen.

"Oh, how is Dark Chocolate doing?" Shego laughed, leaning in to see over Kim's shoulder.

Kim read for a moment and glanced back at Shego. "She's telling me about how her holiday went."

"Do tell," Shego purred, resting her head on Kim's shoulder. Kim breathed in pleasantly. God, it felt good to be so near Shego. And she smelled so good with her perfume on.

"Well, let's see," Kim smiled, looking back at her smartphone and beginning to read the email. "It looks like she and her family are already taking down their Christmas tree."

Anne rose a brow to that. "Every family is different, I know. But Christmas Day isn't even over with yet. Why is Monique's family taking down their tree tonight?"

"They also celebrate Kwanzaa," Kim replied, turning off her smartphone. "While some families keep the tree up during the observance of Kwanzaa, Monique's family take down the tree to make room for the _kinaras _and other Kwanzaa decorations."

"Kwanzaa is more of a celebration of African-American culture than a holiday," Shego added. "Each of the seven days between Christmas and New Year is dedicated to one of the seven principles of _Nguzo Saba_: Unity, Self-Determination, Collective Work and Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity, and Faith. They celebrate their culture with art, music, libations, historical discussions, candle-lighting rituals, and a feast. They're actually a lot of fun if you are ever invited by a family to participate."

Kim rose a brow to Shego after the elder woman was done speaking.

Shego shrugged. "I have a license to teach, Cupcake. You know that. Plus I did get to spend one Kwanzaa with a family when Doctor D's lair was in the Bermudas."

Kim smiled softly.

"Here, Kimmie, let me see your phone," Shego said, snatching the smartphone from Kim's hand.

"What are you doing?" Kim started to ask.

"Blowing Monique's mind," Shego laughed. She then started typing at the touchscreen. "Hey, Monique. It's Shego. _Habari Gani?_ I just wanted to wish you a Joyous Kwanzaa and a Happy New Year. Send."

Kim was just shaking her head mirthfully as Shego handed Kim back her phone.

* * *

"When did you do all of that shopping?" Kim laughed softly as she followed Shego into their bedroom for the night. Both women were carrying an armful of presents.

"You remember that time in Philadelphia where Nerdlinger was giving you that tour of city's landmarks?"

Kim paused to gawk incredulously at her traveling partner. "You've had all of those gifts since Philadelphia and I never found them?"

"You also never noticed how I insisted on carrying all of the luggage in while you went in to get the motel rooms set up," Shego smirked wickedly.

Kim rolled her eyes. "Shego the Great, master deceiver."

"And don't you ever forget it, Pumpkin," Shego replied, winking at the redheaded hero.

The two women had placed their presents in respective piles. Kim turned to watch Shego step into the attached half-bath and began stripping out of her top.

"I really appreciate how much you went out for my family today, Shego," Kim said honestly, as she turned her back to start unbuttoning her own top. "I mean, who would have thought that Professor Dementor had a marketed children's chemistry set that could be legally sold in the United States? The Tweebs got a huge kick out of that. And the brand new barbecue for my dad? He won't actually see it until he gets home and opens the UPS boxes, but I loved the look in his eyes."

"Seeing the look in your eyes as you saw the look in each of theirs made it all worthwhile for me," Shego pointed out. "Did you like what I got for you?"

"You mean the gold sequins gown with the flared shoulders and matching gloves and shoes?" Kim replied. "It's absolutely gorgeous! I love it! It kinda freaked my dad out, but he should have known better after that one black dress I wore on that date with Ron. What did you think of my gift?"

"The emerald stud choker with matching earrings?" Shego replied, smiling wistfully. "Princess, you know me too well. I'm going to be wearing that on New Year's Eve, in fact. Hey, could you come here a moment. I'm having trouble with one of these fasteners."

"Sure," Kim said, turning around. At this point, Kim's blouse was completely undone, exposing the tasteful bra underneath as she strode across the room and stepped into the doorway of the bathroom. Shego had met her at the doorway, her back facing the redhead.

"It's the back fastener to my slacks," Shego explained, pointing to the small of her back. "It seems to be stuck."

"Gotcha," Kim nodded, taking hold of the fastener. "So not the drama. I can... wait a minute, I was able to unfasten that fairly easily. Why was it so hard for you?"

"You also stepped into the doorway of the bathroom fairly easily, Cupcake," Shego replied, the smirk obvious in her voice. She then turned to face Kim. Shego's top was already on the floor of the bathroom, so Shego's modesty was being protected by a very beautiful black lace bra. "And without a second thought, too."

Kim's olive eyes met the mischievous gleam of Shego's emerald eyes and realization entered into Kim's mind. Kim slowly and carefully looked up above her.

Sure enough, a sprig of mistletoe hung playfully from the top doorjam.

"Shelly Go," Kim said in an accusatory tone, smirking at the verdant-hued beauty.

"Rochelle Godeaux," Shego whispered, placing gentle hands on Kim's shoulders.

"Huh?" Kim asked, blinking twice.

Shego sighed bemusedly and shook her head. "In my case, Shelly is short for Rochelle. My name is Rochelle Godeaux."

"That's beautiful," Kim breathed, her olive eyes now suddenly locked with Shego's emerald eyes. "Rochelle Godeaux. I wish you didn't hide it with such a simple mashup like Shego."

Shego snorted. "That was Hego's idea and sadly it stuck," she explained. "But Hego is a topic for a much different time and place. Right now, I see two beautiful, nearly topless women, looking at each other while standing under the mistletoe. How do you propose we handle this situation?"

Kim smirked playfully at Shego. She then began to sing. "I... saw Mommy... kissing Santa Claus... underneath the mistletoe last night!"

"Oh, really?" Shego said, raising a brow to the redhead.

At that point, Kim decided to throw all caution to the wind. She jumped and wrapped her arms around Shego's neck, planting a kiss firmly on the older woman's lips. Shego stumbled back a step from the force of the sudden glomp. Shego tried to return the kiss. At first, it was rather clumsily, since she had intended to be the instigator so as to keep control of the situation. She had not known what the kiss was going to be like, since she had never kissed a girl before and to the best of her knowledge neither had Kim. But as Shego felt the warmth of the kiss, she slowly melted into it, eventually wrapping her arms around Kim's torso.

Eventually, the two women broke their kiss and stared breathlessly into each other's eyes.

"Why...," Shego panted softly, her face blushed a rich green color. "Hello, Mommy."

Kim smirked playfully, despite her own crimson blush. "Hello there yourself, Santa," she replied just as softly.

Shego smiled softly and carefully brushed a red bang from Kim's eyes. "Are you okay, Princess?"

Kim nodded and buried her face in Shego's shoulder. "Yeah. Yeah, I am. I'm... I'm sorry I got carried away..."

Shego began to carefully stroke Kim's hair. "Kimmie, I know you've been holding yourself back for a while. I gave you an opening and you took it. I'm actually kinda proud of you."

Kim hugged onto Shego tightly, in spite of yourself. "Where do we stand with each other now? I mean, were you just giving me a Christmas present? Or were you...?"

Shego took a deep breath. Now came the hard part. "Honestly, Kimmie, I'm not sure. I don't want to hurt you. I've grown rather protective of you since Warmonga's first visit."

Kim tensed up, which made Shego tense up. Kim then looked up at Shego. "It... it sounds like you had one idea coming into this, but a different one now."

Shego nodded carefully. "You were right. I wanted to surprise you with a Christmas surprise. The kiss under the mistletoe seemed harmless enough. And I thought you would enjoy it."

Kim stepped back away from Shego and bowed her head, sighing. "But then I read too much into it."

"You _did _catch me with the intensity of the kiss," Shego agreed, touching her fingers to her lips.

Kim sat down on the bed and began to cry softly. "I'm sorry, Rochelle. I'm so sorry. I moved too fast. Too soon."

"Okay, it's time for Rochelle to take a back seat and for snarky Shego to come to the fore," Shego chided, stepping up to Kim. "First off, you're jumping to conclusions."

Kim blinked through her tears and looked up at Shego. "What?"

Shego folded her arms in front of her. "You heard me, Princess. You're jumping to conclusions. When did I say you moved too fast?"

"I...," Kim started to reply.

"That's right, I didn't," Shego said, interrupting Kim. "As a matter of fact, I remember explicitly saying that I was proud of you for jumping at the opportunity I had afforded you, even if it wasn't the opportunity I thought I was presenting."

Kim furrowed her brow at that point. "So, you're saying you're proud of me for callously taking something from you that you weren't prepared to give?"

Shego shook her head. "Once again, jumping to conclusions, Princess. One, you weren't callous about it. In fact, that was one of the best kisses I'd ever had in my life. And I've been with some guys who really knew how to kiss a woman to make her weak."

Kim blinked in surprise at that. "Seriously?"

"Like Motor Ed," Shego deadpanned, not budging on her stern stance. "Two, I never said I wasn't prepared to give it. I was simply caught by surprise by you taking it."

"The difference being?" Kim asked, a slight edge to her voice.

Shego took a deep breath and shifted to a softer tone. "The difference being that I was prepared to give it. I just thought I was going to be giving it on my terms, not yours."

Kim's expression softened somewhat at that point. "So I simply caught you by surprise by taking the initiative?"

Shego nodded. "Exactly. Remember, Pumpkin, I'm used to being in control, even if it meant making Doctor D think he was the one in control."

Kim nodded. "Good point. But you said you meant this to simply be a Christmas surprise."

Shego sat down next to Kim at that point and patted Kim's thigh gently. "I did. But you taking the initiative did something."

Kim cocked a brow. "And that was?"

Shego closed her eyes and nodded. "Like I said, I liked the kiss. I mean, really liked the kiss. A lot more than I expected to. It felt good, it tasted good. Heck, it even smelled good. Then again, you smell good, Kimmie. But that's neither here nor there."

Kim considered Shego's words a moment. "So, you really liked the kiss? And?"

Shego looked at Kim and smiled softly. "I've been easing into the whole idea of a relationship with you a lot more slowly than you have. I'm still kinda of apprehensive about it. It's a major change to suddenly like girls as well as guys."

Kim nodded knowingly to that.

"But that kiss," Shego admitted, sighing wistfully. "That kiss was something else. I could feel your passion in it. It coursed through me like a heatwave. And you know how I am about heat, Kimmie."

Kim chuckled softly on that note.

"I told you when we first started this road trip that I was interested in testing the waters of this relationship," Shego added, patting Kim's thigh again. "And I wasn't lying. I think today we took a good first step in the right direction."

"Both in our kiss and in our ability to communicate," Kim agreed. "Even though I tried to jack up the latter one."

Shego shook her head mirthfully and ruffled Kim's hair. "You stopped and listened when I asked you to," Shego said, standing up. "That's more important than anything else. You done did good tonight, kid."

Kim laughed, in spite of herself. "Thanks, Shego."

"Oh, and I have nothing against you calling me Rochelle," Shego added as she stepped towards the bathroom again. "I just needed Mean Ol' Shego to step out for a moment during that talk. That's all."

Kim smirked at Shego a moment before speaking again. "Well, then, Rochelle. May I point something out?"

Shego stopped and turned to look at Kim. "What's that, Princess?"

Kim stood up and strode over to Shego. "You're standing under the mistletoe again."

Shego blinked and glanced up to verify that she was indeed in the bathroom doorway, under the mistletoe. Shego smirked at the redhead hero knowingly.

"You evil little minx," Shego chuckled. "Fine, come here, then. I want us to end tonight on a positive note, anyway."

Shego took Kim into her arms and their lips met for a second time. This kiss was not as intense, as desperate. Shego understood why. Before, Kim knew she was taking a chance and that she had to seize the moment and deal with the consequences later. Now, the consequences had been dealt with. This kiss could be enjoyed slowly, softly, gently. After a few moments, Kim and Shego broke the kiss and then gazed into each other's eyes, their foreheads resting against each other.

"Are we good now?" Shego asked, reaching up to stroke Kim's cheek.

"Yes, we're good," Kim sighed happily. "We're more than good. Thank you, Rochelle."

"You're very welcome, Kimmie," Shego replied, kissing Kim on the forehead before turning away. "Now, let's get ready for bed. I'm still keen on keeping to our sides of the bed, but I think we handled a major roadblock in our relationship rather well tonight."

Kim nodded as she turned back to the bed. It was a California king sized bed, so there was plenty of room for the two women to spread out without violating each other's personal space. "Yeah, I think we did. By the way, you smell _wonderful _tonight, yourself. You're wearing that perfume you started the road trip with?"

"Yeah," Shego replied from inside of the bathroom, the door having been shut. "I know you prefer the stuff you bought for me in Santa Fe, but I wanted to indulge myself in something expensive tonight."

"Oh, I have nothing against your perfume," Kim corrected as she began to change into her pajamas. "I just happen to know that it's really expensive designer stuff. I've rescued the designer before, in fact, so I know the price he commands. So I wanted you to have less expensive stuff for everyday use. I love that you wore yours tonight. I could get addicted to that scent."

"Oh, okay," Shego replied, stepping out of the bathroom in her pajamas. She smiled softly at Kim. "Well, let's get ourselves to bed. We've got a big day with the family tomorrow."

Shego watched as Kim settled into her side of the bed and laid her head down. Shego carefully crawled onto her side of the bed and settled in herself. Shego smiled and closed her eyes, taking comfort in the soft breathing she could hear nearby. She somehow felt loved and protected with that breathing nearby. It was hard to explain.

* * *

The Kimmunicator screen flickered on and the image of Wade Load shimmered into being. The young African-American boy yawned, even though it was apparent he was still awake and working at his world-class computer systems.

"Hey, Kim, what's up?" Wade asked. Wade then paused. "Oh, Shego. Hey. Is everything okay? Is Kim okay?"

"Kimmie's okay to the best of my knowledge," Shego replied softly, in almost a whisper. "She's contentedly asleep in the bedroom. I'm in Nana Possible's living room now, sitting on the couch."

"Anything I could do you for?" Wade asked, raising a brow in concern. "You sound like you're worried about something."

"I am," Shego agreed. "Listen, Nerdlinger, I know I don't have a right to ask this. Especially if my concerns are valid. Super-especially if they're valid. But what we talk about tonight needs to stay between you and me. Please, I beg you."

"Woah, woah!" Wade said, raising his hands in gentle defense. "The mighty Shego shouldn't have to beg me for something like that. I should warn you that if I decide that Kim's life is in danger in any way, I'm immediately breaking my promise. But, for right now, you have my word that this is a confidential conversation."

"Thank you, Wade," Shego said, using Wade's real name for the first time ever. "You can do chemical scans through this thing, right?"

"I can do a full suite of scientific analysis scans through the Kimmunicator," Wade replied. "A chemical scan is but one of many things I can do."

"Do me a huge favor," Shego said, pulling a small bottle of perfume from her pocket. "Can you run a chemical scan on this stuff?"

"No sweat," Wade agreed. "Just spray a spritz on the Kimmunicator. I'll do the rest."

"Thanks, Wade," Shego said, spraying a small cloud of perfume on the Kimmunicator.

Wade began typing at his keyboard. "Hmmmm. Oh, wow, this is expensive stuff. I recognize the brand. I know the designer personally, in fact. Kim helped him out last year when Junior kidnapped him. It's the sort of stuff I'd expect you to be wearing, given your taste. Good taste, by the way."

Shego smiled softly. "Thanks, Wade. But that's not what I'm worried about. Kimmie made a comment to me just before bed that caused me concern. I..."

"Oh, my God," Wade gasped, looking at his computer screen and nearly turning pale. "Shego, how long have you been using this stuff?"

Shego sighed deeply. She was afraid of this. "I started wearing it a couple of months before I accidentally met Kimmie in that cabin in northern Colorado. There was a month and a half during the road trip where I didn't wear it. But I wore it tonight and Kimmie kissed me with a ferocity that was almost frightening. Our first kiss, too."

"I'm... I'm going to spend the rest of the night running scan studies," Wade said, clearly rattled. "Right now, I'm going to keep my promise, Shego. This is something you need to handle, anyway. But if what I'm seeing is true and you didn't know about it..."

"I'm going to kill Drew," Shego breathed. "With my bare hands. My pardon be damned."

Wade nodded knowingly, despite his obvious trepidation. "I'm going to finish these scans now and get back with you with the results. _Someone _is going to have to tell Kim, though."

"I know, Wade," Shego sighed. "I know. Thank you. As Kimmie would put it, you rock."

"Only doing what I do," Wade smiled apologetically. "Try to get some sleep. You're going to need it."

Shego nodded before turning the Kimmunicator off. She then bowed her head and started to cry softly.

"God damn it, Drew," Shego sobbed softly, almost a whisper. "What did you make me do?"

At the other end of the room, hidden in the shadow of the hallway, Anne and James stood silently. Anne's hands were to her mouth and she looked like she was in shock. James, on the other hand, stood by sternly, considering Shego carefully.

**[END CHAPTER TWO]**

**Note (Honulicious): **I've already privately messaged you my response. But I forgot to answer your concern about the girls' presents. I've rewritten the scene to account for that. Also, thank you for the idea of the mistletoe kiss.

**Note (Anttolas): **I agree there should have been something for Monique. In fact, I originally planned on having a Kwanzaa scene with Monique and her family, but time got away from me. I've written it in.

**Note (TanteiJe): **The notes are no longer empty! LOL! On a more serious note, yes, I got the ranks from Naruto, but not by choice. Technically, I got the ranks from _Ninja HERO_, a roleplaying game supplement for martial arts story roleplaying. But when I did a Google search for ninja ranks, 59 out of the top 60 hits were about m***f***ing Naruto, not about real-world ninja ranking. The ranks were the same as from _Ninja HERO_, so I just gave up and ran with that. (On a similar note, when I want to do a Google search on the character Sakura, I want the Street Fighter character, not the m***f***ing Naruto character. The Naruto character can kiss my ass.)

**Note (Robert Teague): **Thank you, sir. That you would take the time to comment on my story, given that I'm not even five months into this community yet, is something I hope I will never take for granted.

**Note (bat fan1987, The Last Poison Apple, Jimmy1201): **Thank you, guys! Positive reinforcement is always welcome here.

**Note (Victoria Bitter): **Please get an account. Your review is actually the type I look forward to the most, since it's expressed concerns like yours that drives me to look back on my work, see what I did wrong, correct it, and improve myself for my future work. But it does me little good if I can't open a dialogue with you and get a deeper understanding of your concerns. I've now turned on guest review moderation so I can encourage bold reviewers like you to have an account through which I can communicate. Thank you.


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